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| Photo by the Author |
The Philippines has always been a hotspot for calamities because of our geographical location, specifically typhoons, which have become increasingly severe throughout the years. As such, the main reason for the increasing danger of these storms can be linked to one core cause: climate change. For the month of November, let us all together raise awareness on the importance of our environment through the annual celebration of National Environmental Awareness Month, as well as a few reminders of what we can do to help contribute to the betterment of our surroundings and reduce our carbon footprint.
National Environmental Awareness Month was first declared as part of Republic Act No. 9512 or the National Environmental Awareness and Education Act of 2008. It is stated that for every year in November, this celebration "shall be known as 'Environmental Awareness Month' throughout the Philippines." This move is said to promote the consciousness of Filipinos, especially the youth, in appreciating and conserving the status of our environment. Information about the current and incoming ecological crisis should be disseminated not only to the general public, but also to learning institutions, in order to raise the awareness of the youth about the environmental issues we are all facing.
With all of that said, what can we do to help to reduce the effects of climate change? Here are a few simple things you can do as a normal day-to-day citizen to help combat the ecological crisis:
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| Photo by Willie Lomibao |
Use more public transportation. Owning your own vehicle definitely has its perks when traveling, but a cool mobile can only give you so much in making your life bearable as it can lead to long-term effects in what is known as greenhouse gasses. Public transport reduces the number of people using singularly occupied vehicles and therefore, it's been discovered to reduce CO2 emissions by 45%. Though public transport can be a huge hassle, especially in today’s times, it is definitely one step to a better, greener future.
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| Photo by iStock |
Conserve energy. This is one of the more obvious things to do but as much as possible, it is advisable that you unplug your devices after using them such as your laptop chargers and electric fans when you aren’t using them. The same goes for your lights. If you don’t need to use it, just turn them off. This helps with not only your electric bills, but also in conserving energy produced by power plants that emit greenhouse gasses.
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| Photo by iStock |
Bring your own water containers. Whenever you go out somewhere, you are bound to get thirsty. Some may feel compelled to buy plastic water bottles, but a large majority of these plastic containers are often disposed of improperly. If you don’t plan on disposing of it properly, you might as well just do this and bring your own water container. This goes for bringing your own metal or glass straws, and other similar utensils as well.
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| Photo by Cloop |
Upcycling. The simple act of upcycling used-up materials to make something new lessens our carbon footprint, so long as you do create something valuable that you won’t immediately throw away.
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| Photo by E.M.B.GOV.PH |
Read and be informed. This is probably the easiest thing to do among all of these as you have information at the tip of your fingertips. Simply researching the various ecological problems such as projects that endanger our environment can help. From illegal mining to supporting large corporations to the dwindling amount of forests, scouring several journals and news articles found on the web can really help you understand why we are facing these adverse effects of the calamities that hit our country.
Even though a lot of the actions listed above can help to mitigate climate change, if we don't unite as a collective and seek environmental retribution, they will only accomplish so much. It is imperative that we remain consistent in our efforts in protecting the environment as many of today’s leaders continue to exploit our country’s rich natural resources and surroundings through projects that endanger not only the environment but in turn, also us. This National Environmental Awareness Month, let us be vigilant by being informed and informing others of our fight for climate justice.
Note: This is part one of a four-part series that seeks to help promote environmental education. Stay tuned to UST-CASA Chronicle’s official Facebook page to get updates on this series as we tackle one of the projects that endanger our environment.
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